February 23, 2016: A diverse mix of entities all experience Facebook censorship

Viz, a 37-year-old British humor magazine, had its page taken down by Facebook. A representative from the publication says that Facebook offered them the chance to appeal, but did not inform them how their content had violated the site’s community guidelines. Facebook later reinstated the page; as the Guardian reports: “A spokeswoman for Facebook UK implied that Viz’s frequently risque language and humour had triggered the content block, but that should not have been grounds for removing the Facebook page.”

An image of a nude woman by Tunisian photographer Karim Kamoun intended to raise awareness of domestic violence was removed by Facebook following complaints from users. The subject of the photograph—entitled le seul fautif c’est elle (it is only her to blame)—is “a woman belonging to a higher social class who was assaulted by her husband several times and decided to break the silence.”

A sex-positive couple from Australia has faced censorship of intimate photos. As Nylon reports: “The couple, who says they want to share their stories to encourage others to be more open and honest about sex, has had several posts flagged and deleted on Instagram.”

Onlinecensorship.org seeks to encourage social media companies to operate with greater transparency and accountability toward their users as they make decisions that regulate speech. Learn more.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Matthew Stender, Project Strategist for onlinecensorship.org, is a Tech Ethicist, focusing on the ethical and cultural implications of emerging technology. His research focuses on algorithm transparency, network bias and freedom of expression online, as well as political and socio-cultural dynamics of censorship by social media networks.